Historical perspective on N.J.’s jobs picture

The number of jobs in New Jersey reached its lowest level in 10 years in September, at 3,917,700.

Private-sector employment shrank by 12,000 in September, following two months of gains that had ended 17 months of losses. Also, the private-sector gains from August were slashed by one-third, from 2,900 to 1,900. The number of private-sector jobs in New Jersey is now at its lowest point since December 1998.

Public-sector employment shrank by 700 in September, its fifth straight month of declines. The number of government jobs in the state is now at its lowest level since July 2007.

Between January 1999 and September 2009, the state’s supply of private sector jobs fell by 4,400, or 0.1%. Public sector employment in that decade-plus was up by 69,700 jobs, or 12.1%.

The revisions to the August jobs data, by the way, trimmed back overall employment by 100 jobs, but that still meant the number of jobs rose by 700 from July to August, the state’s first monthly gain since late 2007.